What you need to know
- Along with Acer and ASUS, Lenovo has also announced its first gaming Chromebook.
- The IdeaPad Gaming Chromebook offers a 16-inch display, RGB keyboard, and short key travel.
- Pricing for the IdeaPad Gaming Chromebook starts at $599 and it will be available starting sometime this month.
Just before the calendar flipped over into October, a previously-unknown Lenovo Chromebook appeared in a rather extensive leak. Fast forward to now, and there's no need to guess when Lenovo will release its first gaming-centric Chromebook as the IdeaPad Gaming Chromebook has arrived. As detailed in Google's overarching Chromebook gaming announcement, the focus for Lenovo's latest Chromebook is geared towards cloud gaming.
With the IdeaPad Gaming Chromebook, you'll find a 16-inch WQXGA (2560 x 1600) display, complete with a 120Hz refresh rate. Lenovo is also relying on the power of the cloud, as evidenced by offering either the 12th Gen Intel Core i3-1215U or the Core i5-1235U. As it currently stands, Lenovo doesn't currently have plans to offer its first gaming Chromebook with Intel's 12th Gen Core i7 chip.
On the flip side, there are some options when it comes to storage configurations. There are three different sizes available, starting with 128GB of eMMC storage, or you can spring for either 256GB or 512GB of NVMe storage. Of course, since you won't actually be downloading games locally, this might feel like a moot point, but if you plan on using the IdeaPad Gaming Chromebook for more than gaming, you aren't limited.
Surprisingly, Lenovo managed to work some magic when it comes to battery life. The IdeaPad Gaming Chromebook is rated for up to 11 hours of use on a single charge, matching up with some of the best gaming Chromebooks overall. Of course, we'll have to reserve any final judgments until we get our hands on this beast, but things already look pretty promising.
As you might expect, given the name, this Chromebook also features an RGB keyboard with four-zone color backlighting. Lenovo also states it uses a built-in anti-ghosting feature, along with 1.5mm key travel "for a more responsive and intuitive typing experience."
While the keyboard looks pretty impressive, Lenovo also packed the IdeaPad Gaming Chromebook with plenty of ports for things like an external keyboard, monitor, or mouse. There are dual USB 3.2 Type-C ports, dual USB 3.2 Type-A ports, an audio combo jack, and a microSD card slot if you want to expand your storage even further, or maybe play an emulator or two.
Pricing for the Lenovo IdeaPad Gaming Chromebook starts at $599 and will arrive starting in October. It's great to see Google working with manufacturers of the best Chromebooks to bring something a bit different to the space. Hopefully, we'll see this trend continue in the coming months.
